Wentzville Opens Drop-Off Location For Global Children's Christmas Charity

Element Church in Wentzville will serve as a collection site this year for the Samaritan’s Purse project Operation Christmas Child—the world’s largest Christmas project of its kind.

During National Collection Week, Nov. 14 – 21, Wentzville residents will donate shoeboxes—filled with school supplies, hygiene items, notes of encouragement and fun toys, such as a doll or soccer ball—for Operation Christmas Child to deliver to children in need around the world. This year, local residents hope to contribute more than 17,000 shoebox gifts toward the 2016 global goal of reaching 12 million children.

“We’re excited to open our doors and join the effort to help children facing difficult circumstances around the world—by the simple act of packing a gift-filled shoebox,” said volunteer Kelly Heers. Kelly and her husband Andy serve as coordinators of the Element Church drop-off location, managing operations at the site, where they hope to receive several thousand shoebox gifts to contribute toward the 2016 global goal of reaching 12 million children in need.

Element Church
100 Mall Parkway, Suite 500
Wentzville, MO 63385

OPERATING HOURS:
Monday, Nov. 14, 9 a.m. – 11 a.m.
Tuesday, Nov. 15, 9 a.m. - 1 p.m.
Wednesday, Nov. 16, 9 a.m. - 1 p.m.
Thursday, Nov. 17, 9 a.m. - 1 p.m. and 5 p.m. – 7 p.m.
Friday, Nov. 18, 9 a.m. - 1 p.m.
Saturday, Nov. 19, 4:30 p.m. – 7:30 p.m.
Sunday, Nov. 20, 10 a.m. - 1 p.m.
Monday, Nov. 21, 9 a.m. – 11 a.m.

St. Charles County also has four other drop-off locations available. For a complete list of drop-off locations and operating hours, searchable by zip code, visit samaritanspurse.org/occ.

For more information on how to participate in Operation Christmas Child, call Janet Howard at 314-291-0983 or visit samaritanspurse.org/occ. By going online to give the suggested donation of $7 per shoebox gift, participants can follow their box to discover where in the world it will be delivered. They can also pack a shoebox gift online and even upload a photo and note of encouragement.

Operation Christmas Child is a project of Samaritan’s Purse, an international Christian relief and evangelism organization headed by Franklin Graham. The mission of Operation Christmas Child is to demonstrate God’s love in a tangible way to children in need around the world, and together with the local church worldwide, to share the Good News of Jesus Christ. Since 1993, Operation Christmas Child has collected and delivered more than 135 million gift-filled shoeboxes to children in more than 150 countries and territories. For many of these children, the gift-filled shoebox is the first gift they have ever received.